The family of a Gold Coast man has been told he was killed at the weekend when he stepped on a landmine while helping Kurdish forces fight against Islamic State in Syria.

The father of Reece Harding told the ABC his son left Australia in May, saying he needed to take a break.

Keith Harding said a few days after the 23-year-old departed, he received a message that Reece was doing "humanitarian" work but the family now understands that he had joined Kurdish forces in their fight against Islamic State (IS).

Mr Harding said he was trying to comprehend the situation.

"Numbness, disbelief that it's happening," he said.

"You're scouting the internet trying to look for things, watching every news [story], every article to see anything ... that's going on.

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